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Hickory, NC - The Hickory Crawdads experienced a wide range of emotions Saturday night, blowing a 5-run lead and losing 6-5 before rallying themselves and winning 5-2 to split their doubleheader with the Greensboro Grasshoppers at LP Frans Stadium.
Making up their rained out season opener from April 4th, the Crawdads seemed primed to win game one with a 5-0 lead and only five outs to go. The wheels fell off the wagon in the 6th inning however, as three Hickory pitchers combined to allow six runs before retiring the final two batters.Game two saw the 'Dads trail 2-1 heading into the fourth before center fielder Lewis Brinson smacked a 2-run homer over the left field wall to put Hickory ahead 3-2. The club would add two more runs in the sixth on wild pitches to hold on for their first victory of the season at 5-2.Designated hitter Nick Williams put the Crawdads in a good position in the first game with a 3-run bomb to center field in the second, a blast that would extend Hickory's two-run lead to 5-0. The 'Dads seemed to be destined for an easy win until starting pitcher Connor Sadzeck ran out of steam in the sixth.After retiring the first batter of the frame, Sadzeck walked a man before giving up a 2-run blast to Cameron Flynn to make the score 5-2. Sadzeck would allow another single before being pulled for reliever Jose Valdespina, a move which proved ineffective as the 6'6" righty walked a batter and gave up an RBI single before being pulled himself.Lefty Alexander Claudio then entered the game and promptly allowed three straight run scoring hits to cough up the Hickory lead. Claudio (0-1) was saddled with the loss for the bullpen meltdown while Greensboro reliever Dane Stone (1-0) earned the win after tossing two scoreless frames. Blake Logan (2) earned his second save with a perfect final frame.The second game started off similarly to the first with Williams putting the 'Dads ahead with a solo homerun in the first. The early lead wouldn't last however, as Tony Caldwell and Yeison Hernandez each picked up Grasshopper RBIs in the second to put their team ahead 2-1.The score would remain the same until Brinson's heroics in the fourth. Hickory reliever Tyler Smith (1-0) picked up a well-deserved win after throwing three scoreless innings out of the bullpen with three strikeouts. Andy Beltre (0-1) took the loss for Greensboro after giving up four runs on three hits over his three innings of relief, despite striking out eight batters. Josh McElwee (1) earned the save with his scoreless seventh inning.Williams finished the twin bill going 4-8 with two homers, four RBI, three runs scored, a triple and a double. Brinson also had a fine game going 2-7 with two RBI and a stolen base.With the two-game split the Crawdads move to 1-2 on the year while the Grasshoppers are now 2-1. The two clubs will meet for the final time in the series Sunday evening at 5:00 pm.Get Tickets:Individual Tickets for all Crawdads home games are available right now at Hickorycrawdads.com or by calling (828) 322-3000! Group outings, corporate partnerships, Levine Children's Hospital Claw Club memberships and Ticket Books are also available right now by calling the Front Office at (828) 322-3000.